Bolton imam Hassan Patel, 42, lives at the property with his wife, four young children and his nephew
Horrifying CCTV footage has captured the moment the home of an imam and his family was ‘firebombed’ in an attack.
The attack took place on Eastgrove Avenue in the Sharples area of Bolton last night (Wednesday). The video footage shows a male, who was wearing a helmet and dark clothing, running onto the driveway of the home before the blaze erupts.
Hassan Patel, 42, lives at the property with his wife, four young children and his nephew. He wasn’t in at the time but spoke today of his shock.
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Mr Patel is the principal for Islamic Education at the Taiyabah Masjid mosque on Blackburn Road and an imam at Masjid e Aish on Seymour Road. He said police were investigating.
Mr Patel said: “I am shaken by it all really, and the children are shaken. It is a quiet community. We have not had any issues before.
“Everybody is concerned. They are asking why this has happened. The police are investigating. We want to thank everybody who has sent messages. We really appreciate the community coming together.”
No one was hurt in the blaze at just after 9pm. In the footage, a male appears to be holding a bag in one hand, and another item in the other hand which he pours liquid onto.
The item then bursts into flames on the driveway of the home. The footage then captures the male throwing the item on fire towards the front of the home.
He throws something to smash a window towards the front of the house. More liquid is then poured onto the fire, which then quickly spread onto the front of home.
The footage then captures the male grabbing the backpack and running from the driveway.
‘We are all traumatised’
Mr Patel’s son, Umair Yusuf, 19, told how the blaze was quickly put out after one of his younger brothers used buckets of water. A hose pipe was also used.
Umair said: “My mother, two brothers and sister, and my cousin, were in the house. The neighbours reported that there were two individuals dressed all in black driving up and down the street on a motorbike. One of my brothers was outside at the time.
“He saw they saw him and looked at him. We feel that it was racially motivated. We feel that it was targeted to this house. One person stays on the motorbike and the other intentionally walks up and calmly did what he did. He knew exactly what he was doing.
“My younger brother heard a noise and the smashing of windows. He quickly got a hosepipe and brought it outside. He was screaming. He put the fire out from the outside as my brother, cousin and mother put the fire out with buckets of water.
“The immediate threat of the house being burnt down was put out before the fire service came.”
He said neighbours came out onto the street to support them.
Umair said: “We are all traumatised and so are the local community. The police have said they are investigating at the moment. My father is very well respected by a lot of people in the community. There were a lot of people here in solidarity with us.
“The community is vey close. It is like one big family and they showed us that yesterday when we were all standing together.
“It could have been a whole lot worse. If it had happened at night and we were all sleeping, who knows what might have happened.”
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “Just after 9.15pm on Wednesday 10 June, fire crews from Bolton North and Farnworth attended a house fire on Eastgrove Avenue, Bolton.
“Crews arrived quickly and worked alongside Greater Manchester Police to make the area safe. No casualties were reported. Firefighters departed after approximately an hour and a half.”
Greater Manchester Police have been contacted for a comment.
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